Kanawha County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 180,745, making it West Virginia's most populous county. The county seat is Charleston, which is also the state capital. Kanawha County is part of the Charleston, WV Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
The county began taking formation on November 14, 1788, under the authorization of the Virginia General Assembly and was founded on October 5, 1789. The county was named for the Kanawha River, which in turn was named after a Native American tribe that lived in the area. During the American Civil War, a number of state infantry and cavalry regiments were organized in the county for both Confederate Army and Union Army service.
In 1863 West Virginia's counties were divided into civil townships, with the intention of encouraging local government. This proved impractical in the heavily rural state, and in 1872 the townships were converted into magisterial districts. Kanawha County was divided into ten districts: Big Sandy, Cabin Creek, Charleston, Elk, Jefferson, Loudon, Malden, Poca, Union, and Washington. In the 1970s the historic districts were consolidated into five new magisterial districts: District 1, District 2, District 3, District 4, and District 5. A District 6 was created in the 1980s, but in the 1990s the county was redistricted again, reducing the number of magisterial districts to four: District 1, District 2, District 3, and District 4.
Kanawha County was the site of a bloody miners' strike in 1912, and a school textbook controversy in 1974, that resulted in bombings, and received national attention.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.0%) is water. It is the fourth-largest county in West Virginia by area.
Adjacent counties
Roane County (north) Clay County (northeast) Nicholas County (east) Fayette County (east) Raleigh County (southeast) Boone County (south) Lincoln County (southwest) Putnam County (west) Jackson County (northwest)
Major highways
Interstate 64
Interstate 77
Interstate 79
U.S. Route 60
U.S. Route 119
West Virginia Route 4
West Virginia Route 25
West Virginia Route 34
West Virginia Route 61
West Virginia Route 62
West Virginia Route 94
West Virginia Route 114
West Virginia Route 214
West Virginia Route 501
West Virginia Route 601
West Virginia Route 622
West Virginia Route 817
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 180,745 people and 77,634 households residing in the county. There were 90,234 housing units in Kanawha. The racial makeup of the county was 85% White, 7.5% African American, 1.2% Asian, 0.2% Native American, 0.75% from other races, and 5.3% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 1.6% of the population.
Of the 23,278 households, 43% were married couples living together, 30.3% had a female householder with no spouse present, 19.8% had a male householder with no spouse present.The average household and family size was 2.89. The median age in the county was 43.7 years with 20.2% of the population under 18. The median income for a household was $56,112 and the poverty rate was 15.8%
2010 census
As of the 2010 United States census, there were 193,063 people, 84,201 households, and 52,172 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 92,618 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 89.1% white, 7.3% black or African American, 1.0% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.3% from other races, and 2.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.9% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 14.8% were German, 14.2% were Irish, 13.9% were English, and 13.4% were American.
Of the 84,201 households, 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.3% were married couples living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.0% were non-families, and 32.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age was 42.4 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $42,669 and the median income for a family was $54,203. Males had a median income of $42,522 versus $31,754 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,439. About 9.7% of families and 13.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.5% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.